Power crews make their way south to assist recovery

KENNEBUNK, Maine (NEWS CENTER) -- With the 165,000 Central Maine Power customers who lost power due to Hurricane Sandy back on line, an army of linemen, supervisors and mechanics has packed up their gear and is heading south to help others who remain crippled by the storm.

About 30 two-man line crews and a host of support staff met up at the Kennebunk rest area early Friday morning to get their marching orders. The men milled about before getting some last minute instructions and making their way towards Waterford and Madison, Connecticut.

"It's been a pretty long week, long shifts, working 17 hours and sleeping seven hours, but the guys are really pulling together and doing a good job," said line supervisor, Mark Hall. "You get a good feeling from helping everyone get the power back on. If it were my family, I'd hope they would come help us."

"Once we get on the site, we know what we are going to do, fix this, fix that," explained lineman, Tim Cummings. "One street at a time, one house at a time."

The line crews jumped in their trucks and started south, knowing their first destination, but with no idea how long their services will be required. Most were told to pack for a couple weeks.

"Everybody is probably pretty up," said line supervisor, Charles Voccia. "It is like a second breath, after we've done our part, now we are back on the road again, so everybody is up for it."

Power crews aren't the only ones heading south to help people recover from the storm. Not far behind the caravan of CMP vehicles was another. This time it was a team from Ashplundh Tree Experts, also making their way south to do their part.